I urge you to travel. As far and as much as possible. Work ridiculous shifts to save your money. Go without the latest iPhone. Find out how other people live & realize that the world is a much bigger place than the town you live in. And when you come home, home may still be the same.  And yes, you may go back to the same old job, but something in your mind will have changed.

And trust me, that changes everything.

Well here we are… our last day of this crazy, bucketlist adventure.   It seems surreal that it’s over. 75 days ago we were gearing up to embark on a journey with an unknown outcome.  With open minds and a desire to be completely pushed out of our comfort zones, we have truly been forever changed.

By experiencing different cultures, witnessing firsthand how others live, and being completely immersed into something that is so completely foreign…I can honestly say that I have learned more about life in these few short months than I have in the past couple years.

When you travel…like really travel, you get to know yourself on a deeper level.  Constantly facing fears and living outside of your comfort zone forces you to ask yourself those tough questions and learn about who you really are.  Why are you afraid of this? And what is it that makes you so anxious about that?  It’s an emotional roller coaster at times but incredibly eye opening.

Returning home after a journey like this, seeing and experiencing what I have, my appreciation for what I have in life has grown immensely.  We are truly blessed to live the life that we do! And it is so easy to take it for granted. If there’s one lesson that I want to take back with me, its to NEVER stop appreciating the simple things in life.  Who cares if you don’t have the latest iPhone or best designer clothes…once you see how people on the other side of the world are living (without any of that) it will really bring things into perspective.

At the beginning of this journey I was hoping that I would find some sort of clarity.  I realized about half way through, that this adventure may not be about finding all the answers I needed to perfectly plan out my future but about learning life lessons and gaining insight on who I really am & what I want.

It wasn’t about the destination, it was about the journey.

My advice to anyone who is looking for a little adventure in their life…Push yourself past your comfort zone.  Do the things you normally wouldn’t.  Look those fears right in the eye…and kick their ass!  Ask yourself the hard questions. And be open minded.  I promise you, you won’t be disappointed with the outcome!

xo Brittany